


Blizzard 'Verse

by stonecoldsteverogers (youdickbag), youdickbag



Category: Teen Wolf (TV)
Genre: Gen, Platonic Male/Male Relationships
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-07-17
Updated: 2013-07-17
Packaged: 2017-12-20 11:26:04
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 5,956
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/886696
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/youdickbag/pseuds/stonecoldsteverogers, https://archiveofourown.org/users/youdickbag/pseuds/youdickbag
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A series of drabbles and ficlets from the <a href="http://blahblahwritingblah.tumblr.com/post/24427566062/hawkwardeye-using-the-prompts-below-write-a">30 Days of Writing</a> drabble challenge, which involved writing something based on one-word prompts.</p><p>Scott first realized his importance to Derek in a blizzard.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. "Snowflake"

**Author's Note:**

> This is another drabble 'verse that came out of the 30 Days of Writing challenge I did nearly a year ago. This 'verse, what I call the blizzard 'verse, is my conception of a possible joining (finally) of Scott and Derek in the same pack. 
> 
> Since this was written last year (right after S2 ended), a lot of my opinions since then have changed, and the relationship Scott and Derek end up with in this 'verse is almost completely opposite to the one I'd prefer now. But I still like the way it turned out, so I'm putting it up. 
> 
> It's fairly AU - since Scott willingly joined Derek's pack as a loyal, faithful Beta - but hopefully that doesn't throw you off too badly. Hope you enjoy!

Derek seemed to hold a special fondness for making Scott and the others train in the winter, but especially Scott. Sure, he would put all four of them through their paces, make sure they knew how to track, how to use all their senses, how to communicate with each other on a level that went past subconscious. He also used the time they were outside to drill them in pack etiquette, both inside the pack and with other members of other packs. There was a lot to know, but Derek seemed to be a surprisingly patient teacher during the winter. Scott liked to think that the misery they all suffered to learn Derek's lessons made the Alpha happier and therefore less of a taskmaster and more of a guide, an example of authority. 

Scott didn't know why Derek liked to punish him more than the others, but for some reason, almost every time Derek dismissed the pack, he made Scott stay behind. "Scott, I want you to run more drills. Show me you know how to move quickly and cover your tracks."

"Won't the weather do that for me?" Scott replied gruffly, shaking whatever snowflakes he could out of his hair and refusing to shiver. 

"The weather isn't always your friend, and sometimes it can even be your enemy," Derek replied. "Show me you know how to use whatever weather you're given to your advantage."

"How will I know if I've done it correctly?"

"I'm going to try and find you. If I don't, then I'll give a signal, and the exercise will have ended. Are you ready?" Grumbling, Scott nodded. Whether or not he wanted to do these endlessly repetitive drills wasn't the question; Derek was Scott's Alpha, therefore Scott would do what he was asked. "Go. You've got five minutes."

Scott intended to make efficient use of those five minutes, but he knew that with the snow falling, his tracks would get covered almost as soon as he'd made them. That wouldn't be enough to stop Derek, though. So maybe Scott could use the weather to his advantage. He began to make more obvious moves in some directions before moving in others, leaving behind claw marks and his scent in certain places before heading in the opposite direction. With any luck, Derek would become distracted by the false trails and Scott could get this over with so he could go inside before he died of hypothermia. 

He knew the five minutes were up when he heard Derek's warning growl, and promptly jumped behind a snowdrift, making sure not to disturb it. Then, he waited. He didn't know how long he waited, but then he heard Derek call, and the imperative to find his Alpha overrode all other thought. On instinct alone, Scott could pinpoint where Derek was, and found him with minimal difficulty. They stood staring at each other, Scott hunched over, Derek standing with his arms crossed as he studied the younger werewolf.

"Why am I always the one you make do these exercises?" Scott asked eventually, breaking the silence. Derek exhaled and tilted his head up toward the sky, closing his eyes and appearing to enjoy the feeling of snow falling lightly against his face. 

"Because I know that you can handle it," came the reply. "Due to experience and your anchor, you are a more controlled, and therefore a more powerful werewolf than the others. I put you through tougher exercises..." A pause, and then, "I put you through these exercises because I have to know that looking after yourself is second nature, so that you can focus on protecting the rest of the pack."

"Why would you think that I can do that?" Scott asked, finally shivering, unable to help it. Derek moved forward and had wrapped himself around Scott, letting his body heat move into Scott enough that Scott could function. They started walking.

"Like I said. You're the more powerful werewolf, and that makes you the wolf I know I can trust to look after the pack if I need you to." Scott had expected Derek to say something like it was punishment or necessary training, or even just because Derek didn't like Scott much. He never expected to be held in such high regard by his Alpha, and he'd be lying if he said the thought didn't make the whole tracking and hiding in a blizzard thing just a touch more tolerable. 


	2. "Flame"

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "No, I'm no Alpha. It's more like he trusts me as the better werewolf of his pack that should he need me to help him out or help protect the others, I can do that."
> 
> "Ohhh, you mean like a deputy?"
> 
> "I...guess?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This drabble was with Scott and Stiles, but it's all platonic and was a side story to the overall progression of Scott and Derek's relationship.

Stiles's phone vibrated, and he quickly fished it out of his pocket. _Just finish training w/Derek. Can i come over?_  Stiles sent back an affirmative and settled back against his couch, enjoying the warmth bleeding from the fire he'd set in the fireplace. It felt really awesome, and Stiles was glad that Derek had deigned to help him gather some firewood. 

The front door opened, making Stiles curse as a gust of freezing wind blew through his house. "Hurry up and close the door!" he said, jumping up from the couch. He brushed past Scott and stilled until Scott pushed the door shut. "What, did you decide to jump in the lake?" he asked. "You're freezing!"

"I told you I was training with Derek," Scott mumbled in reply, badly suppressing a shiver. "He wanted me to run some extra drills. In a snowstorm."

"What? That sadist," Stiles sighed, only mostly joking. "Come on, I should still have some of your clothes lying around somewhere."

They started walking up the stairs, and Scott turned to him and said, "I'm not a kid, you know. You don't have to hold my hand if you don't want to."

"What's this? Are you protesting my presence? How dare you, you foolish mortal, do you even know who I am?" Scott laughed, and they kept walking. They got into Stiles's room, and he said, "Hurry up, there's a roaring fire downstairs and you're wrecking my chance to be in an idyllic painting." He heard the sigh as Scott shucked his clothes, and marveled yet again at the wonders becoming a werewolf could do for one's health.

When Scott had redressed himself and looked marginally less miserable, Stiles took him by the hand and led him back downstairs. Sitting himself down, Stiles looked up at Scott expectantly, and when Scott gave him a confused look Stiles patted his lap. "I'm not sitting in your lap, Stiles. I'm pretty sure I'm bigger than you."

"That isn't what I meant, dumbass, lay down and put your head here. If you lay down next to the fire you'll get warmed up quicker," Stiles replied. Scott hesitated, and Stiles rolled his eyes before grabbing Scott's hand and tugging on it. He was aware that Scott was more than capable of ignoring it, but he went down on his knees anyway before letting out a gusty sigh and reclining with his head in Stiles's lap and the rest of him stretched out before the fire.

Stiles buried his hands in Scott's hair, and _felt_ his friend relax. "This isn't weird for you, is it?" Stiles asked softly, and Scott shook his head. "Good, because I might as well treat you like my own personal lapdog." Scott huffed a laugh, and Stiles said, "So why did the sourwolf have you doing drills in a blizzard?"

"He said that he wanted to make sure that I knew how to take care of myself."

"Well, since you aren't dead, I'd assume that meant you could take care of yourself."

"No, like he said that he wants it to be second nature so that I can look after the other Betas if he needs me to."

"So what, you mean like a backup Alpha?"

"No, I'm no Alpha. It's more like he trusts me as the better werewolf of his pack that should he need me to help him out or help protect the others, I can do that."

"Ohhh, you mean like a deputy?"

"I...guess?"

"Well, I guess that's cool. Check it out, Derek's giving you all kinds of trust and respect. Maybe he'll let you cosign for his house, or let you drive his car next!"

"Yeah, not likely," Scott said. Stiles noticed he wasn't shivering any more, and he looked very comfortable. He looked like a happy puppy, and Stiles had to try really hard to not pet any part of him other than his hair. He had the feeling Scott wouldn't appreciate a belly rub; if he did, that was between him and Allison. 

Which got him wondering if he ever laid with Allison like this, or if the only time they spent together was either them having sex or meeting up and talking about whether or not anyone knew they were still together and having sex. 

After that, they fell into a comfortable silence, Scott watching the fire and slipping closer and closer into sleep, and Stiles watching the fire and listening to Scott's breathing get slower, deeper. It was nice. 


	3. "Formal"

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Derek has a surprise for Scott. One that'll hopefully prove that Scott's been paying attention and can be the Beta Derek needs.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There's a bit of a time skip between chapters 2 and 3, mostly because the way I imagined the scene playing out set it during a time when there wasn't winter everywhere.

It was summertime now, months after Derek's revelation to Scott and Scott going to Stiles because Stiles made it better. Scott still wasn't sure what he needed to be made better, but Stiles did it, so Scott was cool.

Derek had slowly been showing Scott more and more about how formal pack hierarchies worked, and the power dynamic that underlaid the pack-family relationship between an Alpha and their Betas. Scott had trouble getting his head around it all, but once again, Stiles made it better, so Scott was cool. There was one thing Stiles couldn't help Scott with, though, and that was application. It was one thing to know the theory, but another thing entirely to apply it and actually adhere to it. 

Scott had always been willful when pushed, and Derek pushed him so often that it was instinctive and also entertaining for Scott to push back, to force Derek to make Scott heel. Most of the time Derek's determination overrode Scott's stubbornness, though it wasn't ever for Scott's lack of trying.

So when Derek called for him one day and Scott dawdled on the way there, he was surprised when Derek pulled up next to him in his car and said, all business, "Get in the car."

"Why?"

"Because I told you to," Derek replied, and the tint of his eyes combined with the set of his jaw told Scott that fooling around wouldn't be the best idea. Derek smelled nervous, but also determined. Well, he always smelled determined - it was a smell that was kind of like faint ash. Scott didn't know if that was unique to Derek or not. The horn blared and Scott jumped, glaring, but backed down quickly when Derek bared his fangs at him. "Get. In. The car." Scott got in, and Derek drove off.

"So, am I allowed to know where we're going?" Scott asked when the silence had become a little less tense. 

"There's a new pack passing through here, led by an Alpha named Jasmine Walker," was the only reply for a short while. And then, "They've requested to meet with the pack leader to perhaps establish an alliance of some sort."

"Why would they do that?"

"Not all packs are always out to compete with each other and become a victor in a contest," Derek said. "These wolves don't plan to stay in our territory, but they're looking to settle close by, and they'd rather set up a plan for peaceful cohabitation. Given that they're probably four or five times our size, I didn't really figure I was in a position to refuse their request."

"Okay...so why are you bringing me along? I thought you said they only wanted to meet with the pack leader," was Scott's next question, and judging from the face Derek pulled when Scott asked, the younger werewolf could infer that it was probably a stupid question. That didn't mean he knew the answer. But Derek didn't seem like he was going to talk about it, so Scott left it alone, because Derek was smelling nervous again.

The rest of the ride was spent in peace, until Derek turned off of the road and along a trail. This wasn't by the Hale house. Scott only vaguely knew where they were, but he was sure it had to be on the very edge of their territory. Derek stopped the car and looked at Scott very seriously, making Scott fidget. "Please, Scott. Remember everything that I've been trying to teach you about pack hierarchy and how to deal with other packs." Scott nodded; Derek's nerves were making him nervous.

Suddenly, Derek didn't smell like anything, and Scott's confusion blanked out his nerves for a little bit. Derek was the essence of composure as he stepped out of the car, and Scott did his best to imitate him as they began walking. They'd only gone a short way when Derek stilled, and Scott stopped mere millimeters away from bumping into him. "Are they here yet?" he asked softly.

"Almost." They waited, and then they heard two other pairs of footsteps. Turning, Scott took in two other werewolves, both women, who projected the same confidence that Derek was, except theirs felt more genuine, more...certain. 

"Alpha Hale," the shorter woman said, stepping forward and inclining her head. Derek nodded his own in return, but offered no reply.

"Will you not greet us in kind?" the second woman asked curiously. Scott suddenly felt the other wolves' focus turn to him, and he opened his mouth. A trace of a lesson Derek had given him flashed through his mind: _"The Betas greet the Alphas initially in formal first meetings...allows the present Alphas to see what both packs have to offer..."_

"I'm sorry," Scott said, ducking his head as he too stepped forward. "Alpha Walker," he continued, looking steadily at the ground. "I hope you and your pack have not had any trouble navigating our territory."

Their focus on him lessened, and Scott looked up to see a soft smile gracing the taller woman's face. "Your concern is appreciated. We have stayed mostly along the outermost boundaries, and we have not had much hardship at all." She suddenly turned toward Derek, and Scott started, feeling summarily dismissed. He made to speak again, but caught Derek from the corner of his eye watching him and shaking his head minutely. 

He didn't like it, but Scott subsided. Jasmine noticed, and smirked, green eyes flashing. "It seems your Beta has something more to say?" It was a challenge, and Scott knew it. The air felt tense, but none of the tension came from Derek, which gave Scott pause. What was he supposed to do now?

_"Betas hold a unique position in formal first meetings...chosen representative closer to the pack...concerns require utmost attention from all present Alphas in inter-pack negotiations..."_

There was a way to phrase what Scott wanted to say, but...well. As long as Derek was okay, then Scott was okay, even dumped into this weirdly formal meeting where no one was dressed in fancy clothes or anything. So Scott simply said, "No, Alpha Walker. I just wanted to express my relief, and regret that we did not get to talk more." With that, he stepped behind and to the right of Derek so that the Alphas could move on with the specifics of the negotiation. 

"Your Beta does not waste words," Jasmine observed, her voice warm.

"I wish that my Beta was so succinct all the time," Derek replied, though his own tone was gruffly affectionate, and Scott could feel the muted relief and pride coming from him. So he hadn't screwed this up, which was good. Now all that remained was for Derek and Jasmine to fix the particulars, and Scott and Jasmine's Beta would raise concerns whenever they felt it necessary.

Scott could probably handle that. Derek certainly seemed to think he could. And while he would always give Derek shit, he didn't want to let his Alpha down. 


	4. "Order"

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Derek likes to give orders. Scott doesn't always like to take them. But isn't that how pack works?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Aww, lovers' quarrel.

Order. That was a word Scott was quickly getting tired of. Sure, some structure was nice, but "order" sounded so stuffy and old. It sounded ancient, like the kind of thing a nonagenarian would do. Scott wasn't old, but he wasn't a child, either. Giving orders sounded mandatory, like the person who gave them expected mindless obedience. Scott didn't do mindless obedience. 

But whenever he talked to Derek about anything relating to the pack, Derek used it as an opportunity to give Scott an order or to lecture about yet another part of the pack order, or the order of things. Different orders, different kinds of order, and Scott didn't like any of them. But whenever he tried to protest, Derek's eyes would glow, and Scott would rather do things of his own free will than really be commanded. 

It was really irritating, but Scott didn't quite know how to deal with it. Stiles had suggested that Scott start ordering around the other Betas like Derek ordered Scott around, and it was an interesting thought. But, Scott had pointed out, Derek was the Alpha, and his authority was supreme. Stiles had countered this by saying that as Derek's apparently "chosen" Beta, he could command the other Betas as long as his commands didn't counteract the Alpha's.

That made it more tempting, but it just wasn't in Scott to order people around unless it was important. He didn't like being stifled by authority, and so he didn't want to stifle anyone else. Stiles had countered _this_ point by saying that he would be giving Derek a visual example. In order for Derek to see what the problem was, it would have to be shown to him. So Scott thought about it.

But the more he thought about it, the more he shied away from it. He couldn't get past not liking authority - being subjected to it or using it. He didn't really know what to do. The thought of making someone do his bidding as a way to keep someone from making him do _their_ bidding made him feel anxious, and uncomfortable. It was making him miserable and distracted more and more as time went on, and he paid for it when Derek snapped at him one day. 

"Do I have to give you another order to make you listen to me?!"

"No! How about you don't give me any orders at all!" Scott snapped right back, before closing his mouth in shock and lowering his eyes. He was stressed about this, and he hadn't meant to challenge Derek's authority, but he was so _tired_ of being forced to do things or talking about the proper order or giving and taking orders, and he just didn't want to do it any more.  

When he finally looked back up, he was shocked to see that Derek looked both wounded and afraid. "Do you..." Derek halted, then pressed on. "Do you mean that you want to--"

"No." The thought of leaving had its merits, which Scott had already considered and dismissed. He enjoyed the feeling of being in a pack - which he guessed was instinct talking, mostly, but it was also nice to have other werewolves to be around. He wanted to stay in Derek's pack. He just...didn't want to have to deal with all this rigidity all the time. "No, I don't want to be an Omega or anything like it."

"Then what do you want?"

"I want...I want you to stop being about order all the time."

Derek pinched the bridge of his nose, frowning now. "What does that mean, Scott? Part of the basic interaction and mentality behind an Alpha-Beta relationship involves a respect of authority. What more effective way to express my authority and teach you about it exists than teaching you about how important order is to werewolves?"

"I'd still like to go maybe a couple of days without being ordered to do something I'd be willing to do anyway because you felt like proving a point, or being lectured about things that I didn't ask to be lectured about! I'm not a kid, Derek, and I don't like being treated like one. It isn't like I'm aggressively resistant to you anyway. Can we just figure out a way for you to ask me to do things without me feeling threatened that you're going to brainwash me into doing it if I don't do it right when you ask?"

When Derek next spoke, it was quiet, even to Scott's hearing. "...Is that how you feel?" Scott didn't reply, looking away, but he looked back to Derek when the Alpha inhaled sharply. "I'm an idiot, I should know that." He muttered something to himself about "connecting," then said to Scott, "I don't expect you to be like a dog, Scott. 'Brainwashing' was never something I intended to do to you."

"Kind of hard to see that when if I do anything against what you say your eyes do the Alpha glowing thing like you're threatening to pull rank on me even though you already do, since it's part of the 'basic interaction and mentality behind an Alpha-Beta relationship'," Scott replied. He sounded frustrated and he knew it. "I don't want to be talked to like a Beta by an Alpha, I want to be talked to like Scott by Derek."

Derek appeared to be contemplating this. "I...I'll see what I can do."

"Yeah, thanks for that," Scott muttered, also aware that now he sounded bitter. It wasn't like he hated Derek for making him so frustrated about this, he just didn't like _any_ of it.

"Hey, I said I'll try," Derek snapped. But this time his eyes didn't glow. "I don't know how to be an Alpha and be Derek and treat you like a Beta and like Scott, because I had no idea I was supposed to treat you differently based on that."

"Don't you treat me differently anyway?" Scott asked. "Since I'm the one you think is capable of handling being a deputy like when we went to meet Alpha Walker? I'm already going to do most of what you ask me to do, since you're my Alpha and I respect that."

"See, you just said that I'm your Alpha, so me asking you as an Alpha, how is that any different than anything?" 

That gave Scott pause. He knew it felt different, he just didn't quite know how. "I guess...there's a difference between..." Ugh, this stuck in his throat, not because he didn't like it, but because he didn't want to say it because it probably wasn't healthy to be this much of a sap.

"A difference between what?"

"A difference between...being an Alpha...and...being _my_ Alpha...?"

Derek's eyes widened, and he coughed into his hand. And that made Scott feel really _awesome_. "Hey--"

"No, sorry, I shouldn't have said anything."

"Don't be like that."

"Don't be like what?" Scott demanded, and Derek rolled his eyes.

"What you mean is that me giving you a request feels more personal and easy, like there's a tension to giving orders that you don't like, right?" Scott nodded reluctantly, and Derek sighed. "I should've figured since you're so unfailingly stubborn anyway." He glared when Scott tried to say something, so Scott stayed silent. Then Derek sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose again, and Scott got a whiff of tension that wasn't his, and it made him blink.

He hadn't thought that Derek was feeling as stressed about this as he was, and apparently maybe even more so. Was it because Derek thought that Scott might leave the pack someday if it got to be too much for him to put up with, because his stubbornness made him unconsciously raise his hackles when given a direct order and expected to follow it immediately?

He stepped toward Derek, who tensed even more. He didn't retreat, though, so Scott took another couple of steps forward. When he got right up into Derek's space he said, "I'm not leaving." Derek looked at him that Scott read as ' _what the hell are you talking about?_ ' "I mean you don't have to act like I'm gonna just walk out because I don't like being ordered around."

"It isn't like you haven't thought about it though, right?"

"That isn't fair of you to ask me that because there's no right answer," Scott said. "I don't want to lie to you, because if I do then you'd know and you'd shut yourself off again, and if I don't then you'd get pissed at me like you usually are and you'd shut yourself off again! I can't win with you, and I don't want to try to! I just want you to treat me like something other than a tool!"

There was silence, and then Derek stepped away from him slightly. Scott let out an angry exhale and turned to leave, getting to the door before Derek's voice stopped him. "Scott." 

Scott didn't want to deal with this any more right now. "If you figure out how to treat me like a packmate and not a drone soldier, let me know. I'll wait around until you do." Then he left. He knew trying to confront Derek about this would be a bad idea. 


	5. "Tremble"

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Derek was nervous. No matter how many times he told himself it was only Scott, that this was only going to be as big a deal as he was going to make it, that undeniable fact loomed. He was nervous.
> 
> But this was important.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This one is from Derek's POV. Because when I'm not exasperated with Derek Hale, I'm crying over him. C'est la vie.

Derek was nervous. No matter how many times he sternly told himself that it was just Scott and that he had no reason to be nervous, no matter how many times he convinced himself that this was only going to be as big a deal as he was going to make it, no matter how many times he reminded himself that all he had to do was string together 26 letters in various combinations and that people did it all the time, the undeniable fact loomed there, immovable and not willing to be ignored.

Derek was nervous. He'd called for Scott using the Alpha's call, so he knew that Scott wouldn't be able to ignore it without extreme amounts of effort. A small part of him wondered if Scott wouldn't resent being called this way, but that part was too busy being smothered by all of Derek's nerves. This was important, and he needed to make sure that Scott knew how seriously Derek was taking this.

Sure, Scott had said that he wouldn't leave, but then he had. And it was Derek's fault, Derek's words and actions and feelings that had driven him away. It was nigh-instinctive, the urge for Derek to push people away. He'd thought deeply about why he felt the need to distance himself, why letting himself fully trust someone was so awful.

The immediate answers were obvious - even now Derek could barely stand to remind himself that he knew her name, and even now Derek didn't like to think about what his uncle had done. And for a while, Derek hadn't felt the need to go any deeper than that. 

But if he'd found the answers, had resolved them, why wasn't Scott okay to let in? Was it because Derek didn't trust him? Scott was his chosen Beta, his second, his deputy. He trusted Scott with the other Betas, with interacting with other Alphas, with everything. He just didn't trust Scott with himself.

Or maybe...it was the other way around. Maybe he didn't trust himself with Scott. 

The force of that conclusion had knocked the wind out of him and sent him to his knees, the howling inside of him needing to be let loose and unable to get out. 

It had been Derek's fault that his family had died. And it had been Derek's fault that he hadn't been here to help his sister when their uncle, all traces of humanity lost in the fire that had been _Derek's fault_ , brutally murdered her and became the Alpha.

Derek had let Kate in, and it had lost him almost everything. And then when he'd left, he'd lost everything else. He'd tried to fill the holes, tried to make the emptiness go away, but it wasn't working like it should. Derek taught his Betas everything he knew, but the connection he so sorely needed wasn't there. The only one who it had worked on was Scott, and Scott wasn't even technically his Beta. 

Scott had chosen Derek's pack, he'd chosen to connect himself to Derek. That bond had been there, and Scott was the more capable werewolf, the stronger one, the human one. Scott was all Derek had, and if Derek let Scott in, he'd screw it up, and then he'd be by himself. Again. 

He wanted Scott, not just as a Beta, but as _his_ Beta, the one he trusted, the one who reminded him of what it meant to be pack. The need for that connection, the need for that connection with Scott, Derek could hardly think about anything else. He had to make Scott understand, but he didn't know how. All he'd learned how to do was push people away, to maintain a distance. 

But Scott didn't want an Alpha, he wanted Derek. He wanted Derek to respect him, to treat him like pack and not like a tool to be used to achieve Derek's goals. He was asking for a bond that Derek was too scared to give, because it was a foregone conclusion that Derek would mess it up somehow, he wouldn't be enough. 

He never had been, and Derek hated that about himself. At least he was man enough to admit it, to acknowledge that this part of him existed and affected every single interaction he engaged in. 

He'd let someone new in once, and it had cost him everything he was. But if he didn't let Scott in, he might lose Scott before he'd ever really had him. And the want finally outweighed the fear. He'd made his decision. 

"Derek?" Derek turned and faced the knowing look in Scott's eyes.

"Scott."

"Have you figured it out yet?"

Derek held out his hand as he let his fangs extend and his eyes begin to glow. Scott's eyes glowed instinctively in response before subsiding, but this wasn't a show of authority. This was an offer. An offer that Derek was terrified to make, but one that he had to make. The fear and need clashed against each other in his mind, making his whole body shake from the exertion to keep still and let Scott approach him. 

Scott had agreed to join Derek's pack, but Derek still had to let him in. Derek hadn't made Scott, Scott was an Omega. Omegas needed a pack, but the pack needed to accept them, and this pack had accepted this Omega. Crimson met golden yellow, and hands touched. 

Derek called out, and Scott responded in kind. _Pack._  


	6. "Outside"

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The first night Scott ran with Derek as real pack was a night he'd never forget.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Welp, this is it. The last drabble in the series. I hope you've enjoyed reading, and that my messing with canon wasn't too offensive.
> 
> (Also, this is the part where everyone else shows up! Yay!)

The first night Scott ran with Derek as real pack was a night he'd never forget. 

They started just before sunset, when both the sun and the moon were still in the sky, one painting the sky orange and the other bleeding a dark purple that faded into and mixed with the last light, leaving everything half-illuminated until the moon could turn everything silver in sharp relief. But by the time that happened, Scott would no longer be paying attention.

They began by stretching and talking excitedly, simple banter back and forth. The serious stuff, the pack bonding, that would come later in the night, when they had all let their wolves out and could more easily communicate. That would be when Scott would be able to learn how to function as one with the pack under Derek, and the other Betas would accustom themselves to Scott's role and position as Derek's chosen Beta. 

It was somewhat nerve-wracking, but the largest hurdle had already been jumped. Derek had offered Scott pack, and Scott had accepted. Before, it had been reversed, and that had made all the difference. Scott could help and be helped, but there was always that option to leave, even if he'd never take it. 

That was past, though, and it had already been a week or so since then. And now they were going to go running, all of them, pack. For real. And that was what made Scott so nervous. 

He needn't have worried about it. As soon as Derek gave the signal, they were off, Scott already shifted before he hit all fours. The others were still in the process, shifting more gradually to learn to control the transformation, but they were picking it up quickly.

Trusting them to catch up, Scott took off after Derek, who hadn't shifted at all. That would happen when the night was absolute, and the pack began to bond. Right now, it was all fun and easy challenge: keep up with the Alpha. 

Scott heard howls, and howled in reply. They called for Derek, and Derek called back, and they were pack. Scott could feel the emotion and message behind each call, he understood what they were looking for. He knew the pack, and soon they would know him, too.

Night fell, and Derek began to move faster, his motions becoming less human and more animal. The chase was beginning in earnest. Scott pumped forward harder, put more power in his leaps and lunges. Derek was gaining ground, but Scott was fast, and he had the pack. 

It wasn't until he felt a snap at his heels that Scott realized that while he was chasing Derek, the other Betas were chasing him. And they'd almost got him. The challenge shifted, and Scott was the one being pursued, being understood. The pack had latched onto him, and now they would have to communicate amongst themselves to corner Scott. Scott would have to know what they were saying, and they would have to know that Scott was listening. 

He slid to a stop before leaping to one side and felt a heavy mass push past him, ruffling his hair. _Boyd._ Almost immediately, his hackles rose and he moved further out of the way to dodge Erica. Isaac hadn't yet made his move, but Scott knew he was there, and Scott was ready. 

Just then, he heard movement and caught a shadow in the corner of his eye. He feinted and then ran, and heard three moving bodies. He could smell Boyd's determination, hear Erica's gleeful, high-on-the-chase panting, and could practically sense Isaac's attempt to strategize. All of his senses were consumed with his fellow Betas.

Which made Derek plowing into him that much more surprising. Scott hit the ground and rolled, but it had already been too late. The pack had won the chase, and Scott found himself buried under a mass of writing bodies, all trying to touch him and each other, learn him. He gave a token struggle, but they all knew that he had been caught.

Eventually, they laid on the ground, unmoving, just breathing. Then, Derek's howl sounded and they moved as one to find him. He stood like a statue, eyes gleaming as the moonlight set off the sharp contours of his face and body. Scott approached first, followed closely by the others. He stood before Derek, waiting as the Alpha moved into his space. 

A hand circled around the back of Scott's head as he was crushed to Derek in a purely instinctive motion to blend their scents, to make sure that Derek smelled like Scott and Scott smelled like Derek and they smelled like the pack. Isaac, Boyd, and Erica moved then, turning it into a massive group embrace as they blended. 

Derek howled, and the pack howled back. And then, they ran again. But this time, they ran as pack. No challenges, no chases. They simply ran. 


End file.
